Fantasy Football Week Two Wide Receiver Waiver Wire: John Brown, Michael Gallup, More

DETROIT, MI - AUGUST 23: John Brown #15 of the Buffalo Bills warms up prior to the start of the preseason game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on August 23, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

The first week of NFL action is in the book, and the fantasy football landscape is starting to take shape. After months of projection, the first one or two weeks of the season are the most crucial times to nail your waiver wire selections. There are a lot of good wide receiver options on the open market, but John Ross, Michael Gallup, and John Brown are a cut above the rest.

Note that in order to make this list, the player had to be available in over 50% of fantasy leagues. If you’re in an eight-team league, make sure to check if someone like DeSean Jackson is rostered. If he’s not, then you should claim him over the following players. However, he’s owned in 74.9% of NFL.com leagues, so he’s not eligible for this list.

John Brown

John Brown is a really good receiver when he’s healthy. After battling health ailments for the better part of two seasons, Brown proved he could still play with the Baltimore Ravens in 2018. He took his talents to Buffalo and recorded seven receptions for 123 yards and a touchdown in his Bills debut.

Josh Allen isn’t a great quarterback, but he has the arm to hit Brown at any level of the field. A speedster like Brown only needs one big play to be fantasy relevant, and it looks like he’s going to be heavily featured in this offense. With the New York Giants and Cincinnati Bengals next on the schedule, Brown should give you starting-caliber production for at least the next two weeks.

Michael Gallup

Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore is the breath of fresh air that Dak Prescott and the rest of the Cowboys offense desperately needed. After dealing with some of the worst playcalling in the league for the past two seasons, Moore showed an ability to successfully use pre-snap motion and smart route combinations to bring out the best in his players. One of the primary beneficiaries of all this is second-year wide receiver Michael Gallup.

Gallup is currently owned in just 23.3% of fantasy leagues but should be a solid streaming candidate throughout the season. Gallup caught all seven of his Week One targets for 158 yards, and he should have similar success throughout the season. Amari Cooper is going to draw top coverage, meaning that Gallup should feast against weaker coverages. The Cowboys face off against the Washington Redskins and the Miami Dolphins in the next two weeks, which is good news for Gallup. Pick him up and throw him right into your flex spot.

John Ross

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver John Ross looked like a player worthy of a top-10 selection in Week One. After underperforming through the first two years of his career, Ross ended his season debut with seven receptions for 158 yards and two touchdowns. He led the league in targets and should be a good play as long as A.J. Green is off the field.

Ross has always had elite talent, he just hasn’t been able to put it together. If he’s finally figured out the subtle nuances of being a wide receiver, then he could be the waiver wire steal of the year. Ross faces a favorable matchup against the San Francisco 49ers in Week Two. Even if you don’t have a need at wide receiver, take a shot on Ross and see if he can maintain his success throughout the season.